NOWIN RACIAL JUSTICE

Viola Davis is set to star as Major Gwen Anderson in the new film adaption of the 1985 cult classic science fiction book “Ender’s Game.” Check out her new look. The film will be in theaters on November 1, 2013.

LeVar Burton is best known as the former host of the children’s show “Reading Rainbow.” But he has a new lesson that he’s sharing with viewers: how not to get shot by the police.

During a segment from CNN’s new documentary “The N Word” on Monday, Burton explained that, as a black man in America, he’s often stopped by the police. And he’s developed a ritual to avoid being shot by officers.

“This is a practice I engage in every time I am stopped by law enforcement,” Burton said. “And I’ve taught this to my son who is now 33 as part of my duty as a father to ensure that he knows the kind of world in which he’s growing up. I take my hat off, I take my sunglasses off, I put them on passenger’s side. I roll down my window, I take my hands, I stick them outside the window and on the door of the driver’s side because I want that officer to be as relaxed as he can be.”

Jamie Foxx took home the award for “Best Actor” at last night’s BET Awards for his performance in “Django Unchained.” And for the second year in a row, the actor made what the Los Angeles Times called a “silent statement” by eschewing red carpet fashion and instead wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with Trayvon Martin’s image. Last year, when millions of people wore hoodies to stand in solidarity with Trayvon Martin’s family as they sought an indictment of George Zimmerman, Foxx wrote on his blog, “My hoodie will be on forever.”

African-American martial arts actor Jim Kelly died on Saturday at the age of 67. Kelly was best known for his role in the 1973 Bruce Lee film “Enter the Dragon.” But here’s another clip of Kelly in action on the film “Black Belt Jones” that shows off the moves that made him enough of a cultural icon to star alongside LeBron James in a 2004 Nike commercial.

Lauryn Hill is talented, troubled, and currently serving three months in jail on charges of tax evasion. But the day before her sentence started, the elusive singer posted a missive about American racism on Tumblr. Some of it made sense, some of it didn’t, but all of it is being used by the media as one more example of Hill’s alleged craziness.

The Los Angeles Times reported last year that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had a big problem. That body that’s charged with awarding America’s best actors, films, and filmmakers was overwhelmingly white (94 percent) and male (77 percent), an unrepresentative sample of the country’s rapidly browning movie-going public.

The ramifications of such a homogenous group of cultural deciders became clear during last year’s Oscar ceremony, which failed to include pioneering Mexican-American actress Lupe Ontiveros and Native actor Russell Means (Ohlala Lakota) to its “In Memoriam” reel that features actors who have passed away.

Good news: there’s been some progress.

The Academy announced the names of 276 new members invited to join the class of 2013, including several filmmakers of color. Shadow and Act notes that the list includes Ava DuVernay, the celebrated director behind “Middle of Nowhere”; comedian Chris Tucker;Kimberly Elise; actress Paula Patton; icon Prince;Raoul Peck;Reggie Rock Bythewood;Roger Ross Williams;Stanley Nelson;Steve McQueen;Tim Story;Tina Gordon Chism; and William Greaves.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been nearly 20 years since O.J. Simpson’s 1994 murder trial. It’s even harder to believe that no major feature films have been made about the case in which Simpson, a black Hall of Fame football player, was acquitted of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her associate Ron Goldman, who were white.

But get ready, because “An American Mystery”, a new film about the case and spectacle that showed just how deeply divided America is on race, may be released by the summer of 2014.

“‘An American Mystery’ has the capacity to challenge entrenched attitudes on a topic that has inspired visceral reactions for almost a generation,” said British filmmaker Joshua Newton, who will write and direct the project. “While we are creating an artistic work, the essence of the film is the search for truth. It was easy to determine that OJ’s participation is not consistent with our standards. Our goal is to lay bare the facts and have the audience reach their own conclusions,” he added.

Newton has already cast British actress Charlotte Kirk to play Nicole Brown Simpson in what they’re calling a $65 million “thriller.” What’s more: Newton claims to have discovered new evidence in the case. The film’s executive producers include former NBA star Bo Kimble and Diane Watson, a former U.S. Representative from California who began discussing the project nine months ago with Newton.

O.J. Simpson reportedly tried to get involved with the project but was turned down.

Social media has stepped up in support of Trayvon Martin’s friend, Rachel Jeantel—who had previously been berated online during her testimony in George Zimmerman’s murder trial. Zimmerman defense attorney Don West grilled Jeantel for hours over the course of two days, and drew criticism for his tactics.

Well, it seems West went out with his daughters afterwards. One of them, Molly West, posted a photo on her Instagram account, with the description “We beat stupidity celebration cones,” followed by a celebration hat, an ice cream, and happy face emoticons, and the hastags #Zimmerman #defense and #dadkilledit.

The apparent reference to Jeantel’s “stupidity,” is equally as offensive as the reference to “dad killed it,” in the middle of a trial over the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman’s lawyers say they’ll issue a statement soon.

—

UPDATE: June 28, 2013, 7:05 pm

Buzzfeed reports that the local news station covering the trial is, which confirmed that Don West was indeed in the photo, is now comparing comparing West’s attire in attempt to match up the date the photo was taken.

Pride celebrations are popping off in a number of cities this weekend, but Houston Pride’s decision to almost ban the distribution of condoms has raised a lot of eyebrows. Kenyon Farrow writes over at RH Reality Check about what postures like this may mean in the future:

But I have a lot of reasons to have caution this weekend about what a new “family-friendly” and “marriage-minded” LGBT community will mean. How will Pride weekend change when married gays with children decide that the femmes in string bikinis in high-heels, or the leather daddies in chaps are just too much for the kids to see?

[snip]

When I was in my 20s and went to Pride parades more frequently, it was the only place that I could get condoms for free. Because they last for several years, one pride parade would last me all year—with plenty to give out to friends! I wonder if Pride Houston is too concerned with the appearance of propriety and living in era of “the new normal” than doing what’s responsible. We know Prides are sexually charged spaces—people are there to mix and mingle! And if you lose the opportunity to get people the access to safe sex materials, you might as well close up shop. There was a time when it didn’t matter if HIV was an official part of your mission statement—it was everybody’s responsibility to do what they could, and Pride was certainly a primary venue for reaching people who might not be reached any other time of the year. By comparison, Houston Splash, the Black LGBT Pride celebration that happened in early May, prominently features HIV testing and prevention messages on its website.

Reality television star Kate Gosselin has responded to outrage over an old photo that recently surfaced showing her in her best slant-eye impression. The picture is especially curious because Gosselin’s claim to fame is being the mom of eight half-Korean children on her show “John & Kate Plus 8.” Gosselin attempted to explain her actions in a statement on her website:

“This was a happy memory of mine. It was a happy time for me and Jon, smiling and ‘goofing off’ together. Jon and I were opening fan mail together one afternoon — which often filled the garage of our Elizabethtown home — and when we opened this plastic Asian dress up wig sent from a caring fan, we smiled, each taking turns posing in it and snapping photos (on my phone) of each other. Naturally, I ‘slanted’ my eyes to show him my best Asian impression, which made him smile.”

“This was a happy memory of mine. It was a happy time for me and Jon, smiling and ‘goofing off’ together. Jon and I were opening fan mail together one afternoon — which often filled the garage of our Elizabethtown home — and when we opened this plastic Asian dress up wig sent from a caring fan, we smiled, each taking turns posing in it and snapping photos (on my phone) of each other. Naturally, I ‘slanted’ my eyes to show him my best Asian impression, which made him smile.”

Gosselin ends with this missive: “The blaring fact that remains is that a personal photo that left a warm and happy memory, was taken and misused without my permission and opportunistically turned into something that it never was intended to be.”

On his radio show today with Tavis Smiley, Cornel West reiterated his support for Edward Snowden, the admitted National Security Agency leaker. Snowden came forward earlier this month as the man who had leaked documents to the media that detailed the NSA’s extensive domestic surveillance program.

On today’s show, West makes a link between the gutting of black civil rights in America and Snowden’s call for more government transparency. “Brother Edward Snowden is the John Brown of the U.S. national security state,” West said, referencing the 19th century slave abolitionist. “He’s trying to let folks know what is coming given the massive surveillance coming at us.

You can listen to the entire show at Soundcloud (West’s Snowden segment begins at 9:40):

Something unexpected happened this week in George Zimmerman’s trial for the murder of Trayvon Martin. Rachel Jeantel, Martin’s friend who took the witness stand this week, became the center of mockery and criticism about her dark skin, her speech, and her weight. The gist of it is probably summed up best by Lolo Jones’ idiotic and uninformed tweet Thursday night:

There are already several high-profile Nigerian and Nigerian-American athletes in American sports: NBA legend Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon, Stanford’s Ogwumike sisters, and NFL pro ball cornerback Nnamdi Asomugh, just to name a few. But at Thursday’s NBA draft, that list just got a little bit longer.

Victor Oladipo was drafted second overall by the Orlando Magic and Giannis Adetokunbo was the 15th pick from the Milwaukee Bucks.

Oladipo, 21, starred at Indiana while 18-year-old Adetokunbo was selected out of Greece.

“An Oversimplification of Her Beauty” is perhaps one of the most unconventional love stories you’ll see on screen this year. But, because I know that’s probably not enough of a reason to see it, I made a list:

Today is National Trans Day of Action in New York and there’s lots to celebrate. But first: four simple steps to becoming a better trans ally from Rebecca Kling at Thought Catalogue:

Step Zero: Don’t Deny Someone Else’s Reality

The first thing about being a trans ally — something really before the first thing — is to know when to keep your mouth shut.

Step One: Educate Yourself

So, you’ve learned to keep your mouth shut. Awesome! You’ll go far. The next step toward being a strong trans ally (and the first real bit of work) is to transform yourself into an informed trans ally. To do that, you need to educate yourself.

Step Two: Begin To Speak Up

So, you’ve read through some Trans 101 websites. You’ve got a grasp on gender identity, cissexism, why you shouldn’t use words like “tranny” and “shemale.” Now what?

Begin to flex your ally muscles. This can be incredibly simple: Call out the next transphobic joke you see on TV.

Step Three: Go Big or Go Home

Now that you’ve educated yourself and know enough to call out basic transphobia among your friends or peers, it’s time to step up your game. In your own life, this can be things like asking your employer why there isn’t a gender-neutral bathroom at your workplace.

After the U.S. Supreme Court hollowed out the Voting Rights Act, Texas was one of the first out the gate to declare that it would immediately enforce a voter ID law and redistricting plan that were both blocked by the Act last year. Texas couldn’t prove that the voter ID law wouldn’t have racially discriminatory effects, as was required under Section Five, and state lawmakers were found to have discriminatory intentions when they created the redistricting plan.

Because of those intentions, Texas may find itself subject to preclearance despite the SCOTUS ruling. Reason being is that Section Three of the Act allows jurisdictions to be “bailed in” to Voting Rights Act oversight if a court finds it guilty of racist intentions. Texas, which leads the nation in Voting Rights Act violations despite it being one of the latest states added, probably won’t be happy with this.

Could Texas remain subject to preclearance? The answer, which may surprise, is actually, yes.

In Tuesday’s Shelby Co. decision, the Supreme Court effectively ended preclearance - for now - under section Five of the Voting Rights Act by invalidating the formula for determining what states are covered.

However, section Five is not the only section of the Voting Rights Act that deals with preclearance. If certain conditions exist, courts also can impose tailor-made preclearance requirements under section Three of the Voting Rights Act - a provision that, unlike section Five, applies nationwide and is not subject to expiration.

Could Texas remain subject to preclearance? The answer, which may surprise, is actually, yes.

In Tuesday’s Shelby Co. decision, the Supreme Court effectively ended preclearance - for now - under section 5 of the Voting Rights Act by invalidating the formula for determining what states are covered.

However, section 5 is not the only section of the Voting Rights Act that deals with preclearance. If certain conditions exist, courts also can impose tailor-made preclearance requirements under section 3 of the Voting Rights Act - a provision that, unlike section 5, applies nationwide and is not subject to expiration.

Up until now, that section hasn’t gotten a lot of attention in Texas because the state was already required to submit all voting changes for preclearance under section 5.

But it very well could come into play in the future, now that section 5 is effectively dead.

So how does section 3 work?

Basically, section 3 comes into play whenever a court in a case under section 2 of the Voting Rights Act finds intentional discrimination that would violate the 14th or 15th amendments to the Constitution.

Once that happens, the court has the discretion under section 3 not only to remedy the intentional discrimination but, if it choses, to retain jurisdiction and impose preclearance requirements - a process known colloquially as ‘bail in.’

As under section 5, preclearance under section 3 would require a jurisdiction to submit election or electoral changes either to the court or to the Justice Department.

Changes would be rejected unless the jurisdiction can show that the change “does not have the purpose and will not have the effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race or color” or abridge the guarantees afforded language minorities.

The US Senate passed a sweeping immigration reform bill this afternoon that promises a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants, a significant reworking of the legal immigration system and billions of dollars of new investment in enforcement on the border and interior of the US. With 68 Senators voring in support of the bill, the Senate brings the country closer than it’s been in thirty years to a legalization program for undocumented immigrants.

As the bill passed, chants of “yes we can,” emerged from immigration reform supporters gathered in the gallery. Senators shook hands on the Senate floor.

But the ultimate fate of immigration reform is in no way certain. The “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013” passed with the full support of Democrats and the votes of 14 Republicans. The reform debate now moves squarely to the GOP-controlled House. Whether lawmakers in the lower chamber will support a bill that includes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants remains a glaring and immediate question.

“The finish line is very close to here, down this very long hallway, in the House of Representatives,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said today on the floor.

The House begins its immigration reform process with an already conservative Senate bill as a starting place. The Senate legislation moved significantly to the right earlier this week as the bipartisan Gang of Eight Senators that drafted the legislation agreed to a Republican-proposed investment of billions of dollars in additional border security measures, including doubling the number of guards on the US-Mexico border to 40,000 and building 700 miles of fencing and walls. The bill would also buy additional drones and other military technology for the region.

“We have practically militarized the border,” Sen. Lindsay Graham, R, S.C., who was among the leading members of the Gang of Eight, told Politico.

Ultimately, Democrats in the Senate willingly agreed to the enforcement provisions in an attempt to garner significant Republican support. And though many immigrant rights advocacy groups and border-region organizations strongly opposed the expanded enforcement, most maintained public support for the overall bill to reach a clear path to legalization. Under the bill, undocumented immigrants who can pay fees and pass background checks will be able to apply for citizenship after a decade in a provisional immigration status and three more years with a green card.

The bill also includes a broad version of the DREAM Act, to provide an expedited path to citizenship for immigrants who came to the country as minors. It includes provisions that would allow deportees with US citizen children, spouses, and parents in the US to apply to return to reunite with their families. And in addition to creating avenues for legal immigration for those already here, the bill provides millions of new immigrant visas, both through additional work-based immigration programs and a decade-long process of clearing existing family and employment based visa backlogs. After those backlogs are cleared, the bill implements a news system for legal immigration based on “merit.” Fewer people would be allowed to immigrate on the basis of their family ties to the US.

The House Judiciary committee is currently considering piece-by-piece immigration bills to grow enforcement and broaden employment-based immigration. Last week, the House Judiciary Committee considered two bills, one on agricultural workers and another to make it a federal criminal offense to live without legal authorization in the US. The latter of the two bills has little chance of gaining Democratic support, but sets a tone for the chamber’s approach to reform that does not bode well for the chances of compromise. Today the committee considered a bill on so-called high-skilled immigration.

The House and Senate now leave for the Fourth of July recess. Immigration reform deliberations will begin again when they return.

19-year-old Rachel Jeantel is in day two of testimony in the George Zimmerman trial. While Zimmerman is the one who is charged with second-degree murder in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, Jeantel has been the target of hateful comments—by both traditional and social media.

Jeantel’s testimony has been fraught with visibly difficult moments, including an explanation about the deep guilt that she’s felt since coming to terms with the fact that she was the last person to speak with Trayvon by phone before George Zimmerman killed him. In the courtroom, prosecution and defense attorneys, as well as the judge presiding over the case, have made multiple statements that they don’t understand her when she speaks.

To be clear, Jeantel simply speaks like someone with a southern drawl—but the courtroom’s white administrators keep making references to her black vernacular as she tries to explain one of the most tragic experiences in her life: the loss of Trayvon Martin, whom she first met while in second grade. Zimmerman defense attorney Don West has been especially, and perhaps unethically, harsh on Jeantel—repeatedly leaving the podium, approaching Jeantel, and berating her with scheduling and procedural questions that are legally outside of his purview. He’s been reprimanded on several occasions by the judge, often for incessantly asking the same question over and over again, despite Jeantel already providing a clear answer, and also for speaking over her.

Pundits are having a field day remarking on Jeantel’s “unpolished” testimony. And again, for clarity, Jeantel is a witness only because she was the last person to speak with Trayvon by phone; her testimony describes the way Trayvon was stalked by Zimmerman, and ultimately taken down to the “wet grass.” She is not a legal expert, and at 19, she is barely an adult. Social media, meanwhile, has exploded with racist and sexist reactions—especially on Facebook and Twitter. Jeantel’s size has also become a point of controversy.

We trust that our readers are savvy enough to find those xenophobic posts if they haven’t already been exposed to them. For now, we’re keeping our page hate-link-free. In response to these hateful posts, social media users have started a #LoveForRachel hashtag, expressing their support.

Lifetime’s new show about Latina domestic workers finally made its debut, and it’s not doing so well. “Devious Maids” drew in two million viewers on Sunday, which is considerably less than other Lifetime dramas like “Army Wives” and “The Client List”, shows that each had around 2.8 million inaugural viewers.

But ratings are only half the story. “Devious Maids” is packed with celebrities but has little punch. Its creator is Mark Cherry, the guy who brought us ABC’s long running drama “Desperate Housewives”, which made Eva Longoria a household name. Longoria is executive producer of the new show, and its cast includes Ana Ortiz, formerly of ABC’s “Ugly Betty”, and Judy Reyes, who’s most known for her role as a nurse on NBC’s “Scrubs.”

“It is not wrong to be a maid, or even a Latina maid,” Valdez wrote. “But there is something very wrong with an American entertainment industry that continually tells Latinas that this is all they are or can ever be.”